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Here are some of the latest health and medical news developments, compiled by editors of HealthDay:

Nicotine-Laced Water Pulled in Maine

Hours after Maine legislators voted to support a bill to ban nicotine-laced water, the Rite-Aid drugstore chain announced it was pulling a product called NicoWater from its shelves at 80 stores in the state.

A Rite-Aid spokesman said the company was considering whether to withdraw the product from its 3,400 stores nationwide, reports the Kennebec Journal.

State Sen. John Martin (D-Eagle Lake) said he sponsored the legislation in response to ads promoting the product as a cigarette substitute for people with nicotine cravings who can't smoke in certain situations. He said he was particularly concerned that children could get their hands on the product.

NicoWater, sold in half-liter bottles, has roughly 4 milligrams of nicotine, the equivalent of about two cigarettes. Its manufacturer, California-based QT 5 Inc., has classified the product as a "homeopathic nicotinum formula," to prevent the U.S. Food and Drug Administration from blocking its sale as an unlicensed drug, the Associated Press reports.

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China Searches for Non-Human SARS Carriers

In addition to its well-publicized effort to hunt and kill Civet cats, China is searching for what it says are other potential SARS carriers, including rats, roaches, flies, and mosquitoes, the Associated Press reports.

Authorities in Guangdong province have threatened merchants who serve civet cat -- a local delicacy -- with fines of up to $12,000.

Officials from the World Health Organization are in the province hoping to find how a 32-year-old TV producer who became the country's first SARS victim in seven months contracted the disease. Released from a hospital earlier this week, the man says he's never eaten civet.

On Thursday, a 20-year-old waitress was declared the country's second suspected SARS case since the summer. Unconfirmed reports say the victim, whose name and condition weren't released, worked at a restaurant that served civet.

Elsewhere in China, authorities at railway stations and airports continue to screen arriving passengers for SARS symptoms, including high fever and respiratory ills.

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Recalled Candles Pose Fire Hazard

Lang Candles of Delafield, Wis., is recalling 92,000 thematic candles whose holders can ignite, posing a fire hazard. According to the U.S. Consumer Product Safety Commission, Lang has received nine reports of the holders igniting, resulting in six reports of property damage. No injuries have been reported. The candles, sold in small craft and candle stores nationwide for $9 to $13, come in 57 themes -- including a birdhouse, watering can, flower pot, and Halloween and Christmas motifs. On the bottom of every candle is a label that reads, "Lang Candles, 800-260-8297, and Made in China." Consumers should stop using the products immediately and contact Lang at 888-526-4011 during business hours Monday through Friday for details on obtaining a refund.

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Health-Care Spending Soars

Spurred by hospital and prescription drug costs, health-care spending rose 9.3 percent in 2002, to about $5,440 for every American, a new report says.

The Associated Press says that spending on health care far outpaced spending in other areas of the U.S. economy for the fourth consecutive year.

Leading the surge was the money spent on prescription drugs, which was 15.3 percent higher than in 2001, according to the new study from the federal Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services. It appears in the current issue of the journal Health Affairs. According to the AP account, the growth in drug costs was falling slightly, although it is still expected to be the driving force behind health spending for the next 10 years.

Hospital spending rose 9.5 percent, in part because of higher wages, a higher use of hospital services, and hospitals' ability to negotiate prices with health plans.

"This continued acceleration injects pressure into the health care system, and everyone -- from businesses, to government, to consumers -- is affected," Katharine Levit, a CMS official and the lead author of the report, is quoted by the AP as saying.

Levit also expected some cooling off on spending because of the recession.

Farmed Salmon Contain Pollutants

Chemical contaminants in farm-raised salmon are at unacceptably high levels and may dramatically increase the risk of cancer, a new report claims.

The key contaminant, polychlorinated biphenyl (PCB), has been banned in the United States since the late 1970s, HealthDay reports. It is among the "dirty dozen" chemical contaminants to be eliminated under the United Nations treaty on persistent organic pollutants. PCBs have been linked to cancer and impaired fetal brain development.

In the new study, the largest to date, Carpenter's team tested more than 2 metric tons of farmed and wild salmon from around the world, according to the HealthDay account..

They found farm-raised salmon had significantly higher PCB levels and many chlorinated pesticides than wild Pacific salmon. The researchers report the finding in the Jan. 9 issue of Science. High PCB levels in farmed salmon result from the fish meal and fish oil they are fed.

While these levels of PCBs are far below those called dangerous by the U.S. Food and Drug Administration (FDA), they are unsafe by the standards used by the U.S. Environmental Agency.

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Migraine Sufferers Would Prefer Root Canal

A new survey of people with migraines finds that nearly one in three sufferers would prefer a root canal to the tremendous headaches they get.

The survey, conducted by the National Headache Foundation, also found that 32 percent of people who say they have migraines have not been properly diagnosed by a doctor.

"These data illustrate the debilitating nature of migraines and highlight the issue of under-diagnosis and misdiagnosis of migraines in the U.S.," the foundation said in a prepared statement.

The majority of sufferers, which the foundation calls "migraineurs," said their pain affects their work and time with their families. Two-thirds said they relied on rest and meditation to relieve symptoms, and two-thirds also said they took over-the-counter drugs. The foundation said over-the-counter drugs aren't always the best way to treat migraines.

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